Formula One Facts

Always wanted to know more about one of the most popular sports in the world? Here are some fascinating facts about Formula One Racing:

In the 2018 season, there are currently 20 teams competing with 2 drivers each per team. It really is a global sport, with 350 million people tuning in to watch the races or attending in person. If you’ve always wanted to experience a race close to the action, consider an experience at the Monaco F1 Paddock Club with https://edgeglobalevents.com/f1-paddock-club/f1-paddock-club-monaco/.

A Formula One race is a noisy affair with sounds reaching up to 140db –which is the equivalent of standing next a plane that’s taking off! The fastest recorded speed of one of these race cars was in 2016 when Valtteri Bottas reached a staggering 231.48 mph in the Mexican Grand Prix.

A Formula 1 race lasts as long as it takes to travel 305km, which varies depending on the track length. For example, Silverstone in the UK needs 51 laps to complete this distance. The track in Monaco is the only exception at just 260.5km because it takes place on a street circuit.

In the 2018 season, there are 21 races beginning in Melbourne, Australia and ending in Abu Dhabi. Most races take place once every fortnight and there is a four-week summer break between July and August.

Ever wondered what all the different flags mean? Safety marshals that are located around the track have different flags to communicate with the drivers. These include:

Chequered flag – Shown at the end of a race to signal the winner and then every car that follows over the finishing line.

Blue flag – This warns a driver that they are about to be lapped and should allow the faster vehicle to overtake.

Yellow flag – This signals that there is danger ahead and drivers should reduce speed.

Red flag – The race has been stopped, due to an accident or poor weather conditions affecting the track.

You might notice cars occasionally pulling into the side of the track. This is known as a pit stop and it has to be really quick in order to get back into the race as speedily as possible. A team of around 20 mechanics change wheels, adjust equipment and change any parts. Amazingly, this normally takes less than 3 seconds. The fastest ever wheel change was 1.9 seconds by the Williams team in 2016.

Where a car is positioned at the start of a race is decided during practice sessions and qualifying rounds. There are 3 practice sessions and all drivers must complete at least one. A qualifying session is then held on the afternoon before the race which decides the driver’s position from 1 to 20.

All 20 teams are on the track in the first qualifying session and the slowest drivers end with positions 16-20. The 15 cars left complete the second qualifying session for positions 11-15 and the 10 cars left compete in session 3 for the top 10 positions on the starting grid.